Two top Muslim organisations -- All India Milli Council and Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind (Mahmood Madni) -- on Tuesday backed National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Chairman Wajahat Habibullah's call for scheduled caste status to Muslim and Christian Dalits.
The Deepa Thoon controversy, if not allowed to die a natural death, could take the election focus away from the anti-incumbency impacting the DMK and into the secular space. Stalin would love to have it that way, all over again, after the three past elections, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The ministry also submitted that the identification of scheduled castes is centred around a specific social stigma that is limited to the communities identified in the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950.
'So my question was, 'What is it that you are proud of? What have you achieved? What is your contribution?' 'He had no answer.'
'Arundhati Roy is like a ballerina performing on a high wire, cool, supremely at ease but conscious of all the adoring eyes on her,' notes P Vijaya Kumar.
'And then the people who call themselves great nationalists, I can bet you that 99 per cent of them are dodging taxes, have sent their kids to America, or are doing everything to make sure that what goes on in this country doesn't affect their personal wealth or their whatever bull*&$%.'
Universally practiced forms of discrimination and exclusion include social and cultural segregation, expressed in various forms of refusal to have any social interaction; endogamy, expressed through the universal prohibitions on Dalit-non-Dalit marriages and through severe social sanctions on both Dalits and non-Dalits, who break this taboo.'In short, in most social contexts, Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians are Dalits first and Muslims and Christians only second,' it said.
This is important because he is to be seen as a sure winner before criss-crossing the state to campaign for candidates of the party or an alliance, highlights N Sathiya Moorthy.
The bench was informed by advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for petitioner NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation and others, that the Centre has filed an affidavit saying it wants to appoint another commission to examine the issue.
The Bench said "it is a very important issue" and wanted to go through the previous rulings of the apex court on this issue.
'The day the BJP has a majority in the Rajya Sabha, the cow will be declared 'rashtra mata.'
Those convicted included the brother-in-law of Kevin.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, accusing them of neglecting the welfare of backward sections, Dalits, tribals, and minorities. Gandhi promised a caste census in Delhi if the Congress forms the government, echoing his national call for removing the 50 percent cap on reservations. He also criticized Kejriwal's governance, drawing parallels with Modi's alleged reliance on propaganda and false promises. The Congress and AAP are part of the INDIA bloc, but are contesting the upcoming Delhi assembly polls separately. Gandhi's speech highlights the growing political tension ahead of the polls, where the Congress aims to regain its foothold in Delhi.
The BJP has vehemently criticized the Karnataka government's decision to provide four per cent reservation for Muslims in government contracts, labeling it an "unconstitutional misadventure." The party has pledged to challenge the move in court and has vowed to oppose it at all levels. Meanwhile, the ruling Congress party has defended the reservation, arguing that it aligns with constitutional provisions. The issue has led to heated exchanges in the Karnataka Assembly, with both parties accusing each other of engaging in appeasement politics.
'Even if they try to silence us, even if they kill so many of us, we won't give up.' 'We won't give up doing the good work we are doing for society.' 'Because we love this country.'
The government has to specify what it intends to do with caste census data. It will be closely tracked if the government would simultaneously move towards removing the present 50% bar on reservations using means which are permitted in law. If this is not done, the entire exercise will become meaningless and could boomerang on the BJP, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
"The government of today which was in power in 1996 has to be morally committed on the issue," he said.
Muslims and Christians will jointly organise 'adhikar conference' (rights conference) in Patna on July 1 to press the Centre for acceptance of the recommendations of the Sacchar Committee and Ranganathan Committee.
The latest biopic on Jyotibai Phule has come at a time when the Department of Taking Offence is super-active. Utkarsh Mishra feels it will be interesting to see if it portrays his attack on Brahminism in the same 'no holds barred' manner-- and, if it does, what reaction it provokes.
Congress and BSP members were not present in the House, having walked out earlier on a different issue.
On the 134th birth anniversary of the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, Utkarsh Mishra revisits three incidents from Dr B R Ambedkar's life that lay bare the deeply entrenched nature of caste prejudice.
The Tamil Nadu assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the Centre to extend the benefits accorded to Scheduled Castes also to those among the SCs embracing Christianity.
What is the effect of the report of a commission of inquiry that has been rejected or not accepted by the government, and whether the empirical data which formed the basis of the report can be looked at while determining a constitutional issue, the Supreme Court wondered on Wednesday while considering the question of quotas for Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians.
One of the public interest litigations filed in the apex court has sought reservation for converted Dalits on the same footing as is extended to the Scheduled Castes following Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.
The members of the Kerala Council of Churches (KCC), an ecumenical body of churches in the southern state, will conduct the protest march from the Martyr's Column to the Secretariat, the administrative hub in Thiruvananthapuram.
"India risks becoming one of the world's main generators of instability, atrocities and violence because of the massive scale and gravity of the violations and abuses targeting mainly religious and other minorities such as Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and others. It is not just individual or local, it is systematic and a reflection of religious nationalism," he said.
If the BJP has to work as a junior partner of Vijay's TVK, then either the party will have to change the state leader, or the latter should change himself. Incidentally, ever since Vijay started talking politics and elections, the pro-BJP/Hindutva social media had stopped dragging his name into any non-existing issue.' In particular, they have stopped referring to him by his Christian name, 'Joseph Vijay', observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
A bench comprising Chief Justice R C Lahoti and Justice G P Mathur issued the notice after briefly hearing counsel Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for petitioner Centre for Public Interest Litigation.
An independent United States Congressional research report has alleged that the scope and scale of human rights abuses in India has increased under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Wankhede is facing the vigilance probe by NCB after an independent witness in the drugs-on-cruise case, in which Aryan Khan is one of the accused, claimed of overhearing a discussion of a Rs 25 crore pay-off, including Rs 8 crore for Sameer Wankhede.
A new entrant, whether a popular actor or not, has not been able to sweep the polls, as their fans had hoped for. Given a proven pattern, it should hold true for Vijay as well. Or, something drastically has to happen between now and 2026, asserts N Sathiya Moorthy.
'The police will give weightage to the socially strong.' 'The dominant caste is usually a powerful person, while the scheduled caste is normally powerless.' 'That is why FIRs are not registered.' 'Most of these complaints are by very poor people against very rich powerful people.'
The All India SC and ST Federation, the main organiser of the programme, had earlier said 2,000 dalits would embrace Buddhism and another 1,000 Christianity.
'If the Maha Vikas Aghadi thinks that they have won 30 (Lok Sabha) seats and that would translate to winning 180 assembly seats they would be living in a fool's paradise.'
A case has been registered in Hyderabad against Telangana Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Raja Singh for his remarks which allegedly defended the attacks on Dalits in Gujarat's Una and supported the cow vigilantes involved.
Where do Vijay and his TVK expect to get their votes from? Vijay has a huge fan following among women, but will they automatically become his voters like they had done for MGR's AIADMK, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Leaders and members of the Hindu community rue the fact that they are not given proper representation and many are not even registered as voters.
'I declared myself a Sikh. We want freedom from caste discrimination.'
Stoutly defending Sanatan Dharma, Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai on Thursday dubbed the ruling DMK a casteist party that must be decimated, and questioned its track record on Dalit empowerment.
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